Australian Bureau of Statistics

These video tutorials will familiarise you with a range of ABS products that are useful in the classroom. You can view transcripts of each segment by clicking on the triangle next to its heading.
On this page:

Transcript:
National Accounts presents the latest data on the Australian economy including GDP, international trade, investment, net disposable income and a range of feature articles on selected topics.
Starting at the ABS homepage, click on the 'National Accounts' link under the National Statistics heading. You will be directed to the National Accounts themes page which contains a comprehensive list of National Accounts releases. Scrolling down, you will find a wealth of information papers and an index of National Accounts feature articles.
One of the main economic indicators measured by the ABS is GDP. Estimates of GDP are available on a quarterly and annual basis. Get the quarterly GDP figures in catalogue number 5206.0. Open the publication and you will see the quarterly figures are shown at the top of the page, including the yearly percentage change. Scrolling down, you can see graphs are also provided along with key points for the respective quarter. To access the full publication click on the Downloads tab. Download the full publication in PDF format or to get more detailed data, open one of the Microsoft Excel time series spreadsheets. You will find more than 50 years of time series data for the quarterly GDP estimates.
For annual estimates of GDP, go back to the ABS home page by clicking on the ABS logo in the top left hand corner of the page. Note that you can click this logo at any time to get back to the ABS home page. Select National Accounts from the quick links again. The Australian System of National Accounts, cat. no. 5204.0, provides a more detailed breakdown of various components of National Accounts, including annual GDP. Please note a wealth of economics data is also available via the ABS Theme pages from the top navigation menu. This is just another pathway for finding the data you want.

Includes: A demonstration of the National Accounts themes page and how to find quarterly and annual GDP data.
Duration: 2:46 minutes
Size: 8.41 MB National Accounts

Includes: A description of some of the main features of the Australian Social Trends publication and where to find it on the ABS website.
Duration: 3:09 minutes
Size: 9.00 MBAustralian Social Trends

Segment 12: Measure of Australia's ProgressTranscript:

Measures of Australia’s Progress came out of the growing interest in assessing whether life in Australia was getting better. One outcome of measuring and reporting on progress is to make sense of the world we live in. Students can use this publication as a rich information source for assignments in a range of subject areas, with a focus on longitudinal analysis. A class discussion could arise about the potential indicators of a country’s progress and the approach taken by ABS to measure progress in Australia.
The Measures of Australia’s Progress publication is found on the left-hand menu of the ABS homepage, under Key Products. The publication opens on the home page to present the latest articles on selected indicators. On the left hand menu under the Summary tab there are links to chapters and all available feature articles. In the 2009 issue, you can also access a 10 year summary for selected indicators. Here, the annual rate of change for selected summary indicators is displayed on a graph. Please note, although publication layouts may vary from year to year, the left hand navigation menu will always provide links to core information available in the publication.
We will go back to the home page via the Summary tab, and click on a topic of interest. There are time series graphs displayed with accompanying commentary. Scroll down to find related publications of interest. A list of all related publications is also found under the Related Information tab. If you would like to access the source data for use with your students, click on the Downloads tab and then click on the Excel icon. The data cube will open in a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet on the contents pages. Table topics covered in the PDF publication will be included in this spreadsheet. Open a table from one of the worksheets below. You can also open a table from the body of the page. Simply click on the table number to open the time series data you want. This table is displaying life expectancy for the ten year period 1997 to 2007.

Includes: How to find the Measures of Australia's progress publication and a brief demonstration of key features.
Duration: 3:02 minutes
Size: 8.75 MBMeasures of Australia's Progress

Segment 13: Yearbook Australia

Transcript:
Year Book Australia is the principal reference work produced by the Australian Bureau of Statistics. The Yearbook series provides a detailed statistical overview of economic and social conditions in Australia. It also contains information about Australia’s geography and climate, government, international relations, defence, education, health and welfare support systems. This is a broad-ranging publication that is a rich reference for projects and classroom activities across the curriculum.
Find Australian Yearbooks from the left-hand navigation menu of the ABS homepage. This will take you the entry page of the full suite of Australian Yearbook products. Select 'Yearbook Australia' and you'll be taken to the latest release. All feature articles and Media Releases can be found under the Summary tab on the left hand menu. You may choose to view articles on the web or download a free PDF copy from the Downloads tab.
Yearbooks can also be purchased in hard copy as a great addition to your school library. Did you know that you can access on-line issues of Australian Yearbooks dating back to 1908? Simply click on the Past & Future releases tab to select the Yearbook you want to view.

Includes: How to find the Yearbook Australia series and a brief demonstration of key features.
Duration: 1:39 minutes
Size: 5 MB Yearbook Australia

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